Stars lead stampede out of Europe

Only a short few years ago, the chances of any player leading the orders of merit on both the PGA and European Tours were slim in the extreme.

However, now that it has been achieved in successive seasons by Luke Donald and Rory McIlroy, the likelihood is that it will now happen on a regular basis.

This situation has come about largely because so many of the leading Europeans now have homes in the States and compete there almost as often as they do in Europe. Of the €3,696,597 McIlroy has earned so far in Europe and his total of €6,330,792 in the States, €2,484,438 is included in both Tours. His total winnings from actual tournament play amounts to €7,544,949, a sum which does not include the million dollar plus fees he received for appearances in recent unofficial exhibitions with Tiger Woods.